A Vampire's Saving Embrace (14 page)

Abby burst out laughing and Desmond found the sound absolutely enchanting. My God, he thought in amazement - how could one person be so damn perfect?

“
Are
you trying to kill me, Mr. LaGrange?” She asked haughtily - trying desperately to look stern - but failing miserably. This was just too much fun. The look of surprise on his face was priceless.

“Absolutely not,” he replied, leaning forward and capturing her lips in a quick, but firm kiss. “I am merely curious. A downfall of mine, I admit – but I guess now is not the time to put it to the test. I really don’t want anything to happen to you,” he admitted softly, his eyes holding hers with an intense heat. “Now, eat.” He finally commanded – his lips still turned up in a smile and she dutifully walked across the room – but not before throwing him a cool wink over her shoulder and making sure that she swayed her hips a little more than usual. His soft groan was answer enough that she had gotten it right and she giggled happily.

Abby sat down on the edge of the bed and ate her breakfast. Even cold, it was fantastic and once again his culinary skills impressed her.

She watched as Desmond gathered up clean clothes and began to dress, showing no inhibition around her what so ever, and she found herself growing warm all over again. This all seemed so natural - so disturbingly… right.

She pushed the thought aside, not liking where her train of thought was taking her. It would be so easy to imagine a life with Desmond. Much too easy - and Abby knew without a doubt that he felt a loyalty towards her that only had to do with her heritage. The rest… well -that was most likely just a way to pass the time for him – besides, hadn’t she been the one who had seduced him?
And
hadn’t Luke said that the man had practically lived like a monk? The vamp was probably suffering from a severe case of blue-balls, she thought darkly.

When Desmond finished dressing, he turned to find Abby deep in thought, her brows knit together. “Love?” he questioned, walking over to her and running his finger along her jaw. “Is there something troubling you?”

“No… not at all.” She sighed, deciding that she was done questioning everything. She was just going to enjoy being with him for however long she had. She gave him a smile and stood. “I’d better get dressed. Breakfast was wonderful by the way…thank you. It still astounds me what a great cook you are.”

“As I said before, I have many talents.” He laughed and Abby blushed – thinking of how true
that
was! “I was thinking,” Desmond said, grabbing one of the shopping bags and handing it to her. “It’s rather overcast today, how would you like to go out for a walk?”

“Really,” she breathed, her emerald eyes lighting up in a way that Desmond found utterly enchanting – not to mention distracting. They were the greenest eyes he had ever seen and they would have taken his breath away – that is, if he had needed to breathe.

“If you would like - we could hike a bit in the woods.” He said with a grin, loving the way her eyes danced with excitement at the prospect of being outside. She was truly showing her fey side.

“Oh, Desmond, that would be wonderful. But… wait. Are you sure that you’ll be ok?” she asked - instantly worried for him - which only caused another chink to crack in his armor.

“I will be perfectly fine,” he assured her - taking her hand and lifting it to his lips where he gently kissed each of her fingertips before kissing her palm. “It’s overcast, we’ll be in the woods and fear not - as added protection I’ll even wear sunscreen. Is that all to your satisfaction, my pet?”

She nodded happily and grabbed the sweater from the bag he had handed her. Throwing off the towel, she pulled the sweater over her head then grabbed a pair of panties from another and finally the jeans she had worn the day before.

Desmond watched her - heat spreading through him. Damn, this woman fired his blood as no other ever had. She was soft and curvy and absolutely delightful – and he found himself having a difficult time concentrating when she was near.

When she had put on her socks and boots she walked over to him and wrapped her arms around his waist. “Thank you,” she whispered, turning her face up to look into his eyes.

“For what?” he asked - his lips lightly feathering across hers.

“Everything,” she answered softly - before leaning up on her toes and deepening their kiss.

After a moment, Desmond pulled back - his mouth turning up. “You keep that up,” he murmured huskily, pushing his growing erection against her hip suggestively, “and we won’t make it for that walk.”

“You, Mr. LaGrange - are insatiable,” she laughed –although her own voice had lowered an octave or two.

“You have
no
idea, sweetness,” he replied, that grin stealing across his mouth.

Chapter 7

As they walked out of the house and towards the woods, Desmond took Abby’s hand in his – intertwining their fingers - and she was again instantly struck by how normal this all seemed. The feel of her hand in his was such a wonderful, simple pleasure that she found it slightly unsettling. Her heart clenched in her chest as realization hit her full force. In just a few short days, her life had changed completely.

She was falling absolutely, completely in love with a Vampire – a
Vampire
for God’s sake, she thought with a start - and realized that there was not a damn thing she could do about it. This man was what dreams were made of, and there was no way to stop the onslaught of feelings rushing at her. She was falling in love with everything about him. His kindness, his compassion – the way he talked, the way he made her feel when he touched her. She was tumbling heart first into an abyss that there was no avoiding - or no returning from. She was completely lost.

She knew without a doubt that her heart would be shredded by this man beyond repair once he felt his duty to her was over - but that would be something she would have to deal with when the time came. These days spent with Desmond had been the happiest she had ever experienced, and she wanted to cherish them. And it wasn’t just the physical aspect – although that was definitely spectacular -she thought with a shiver -no, it was that she thoroughly enjoyed being with him. He was warm and considerate and funny and just…everything she never thought a man could be.

When he had opened himself up to her and told her of his mother’s betrayal, she realized with a painful twist of her heart that there was no going back. She was
way
beyond reigning in her feelings. She had felt a deep need to comfort and protect him, as if he were hers -and she swallowed back the lump that was forming in her throat with difficulty. She desperately needed to remember that he
wasn’t
hers – and never would be. She would grow old and wither away and he would live forever. He would make sure she was safe – then go on with his life as she would need to go on with hers - although, that seemed an unlikely possibility. How could she go on without him?

She glanced up at him and was once again taken by the absolute beauty of this man. His strong chiseled jaw and straight nose would put any Greek God to shame - not to mention those damn eyes of his. He was perfection personified in every single aspect of his being – and Abby couldn’t help but curse that life just wasn’t fair.

“You are quiet, little one,” he said softly - breaking into her thoughts.

“I was just thinking how nice it is to be out in the fresh air. I’ve missed this.” Desmond looked down at her and realized that she was not being truthful. Something was definitely troubling her – he could feel it.

He had tried to read her - but her damn fey blood made it impossible. Her thoughts were hidden from him. “Abby,” he began, but an excited greeting stopped him.

“Des!” A young man called, running up to them, his face set in a wide smile. “Hey!”

“Hello, Caleb.”

“You must be Abby,” he said, extending his hand out to her. “I’m Caleb. It’s very nice to meet you. Luke has told me all about you.”

Abby took the boys hand and smiled warmly. My God, she thought, her eyes widening in surprise – he seemed so young. “It’s nice to meet you too, Caleb.”

“I was just making the rounds,” he explained. “What are you guys up to?”

“Abby and I were just going for a walk.”

“Are you sure it’s safe?” he asked, his expression growing concerned, “I mean - the rest of the pack is around and all…”

He stopped when Desmond reassuringly laid his hand on the boys shoulder. “No worries, Caleb,” he said, smiling broadly, “I believe I will be able to take care of Abby if the need arises.” The boy nodded emphatically - his awe of Desmond quite apparent, and Abby couldn’t help but commiserate with the gangly teen. Talk about your case of hero worship. The poor kid was positively beaming - but then again, Abby thought with a shake of her head – who could blame him? The damn vampire was perfect.

“Ok, then. Well …if you need anything… I’ll be around.” With that he trotted off, looking back over his shoulder to wave. “It was really nice meeting you Abby!” He called, and she waved back at him with a smile.

“He’s just a baby,” Abby whispered when Caleb had disappeared.

“Seventeen,” Desmond offered, once again beginning to walk towards the path in the woods. “He has only been able to shift for about a year,” he explained - and Abby was thankful for the interruption.

She knew Desmond was about to press her as to why she was so uncharacteristically quiet and she didn’t want to have to lie to him – but there was no purpose of trying to explain her feelings – not when she really didn’t even want to think about them herself – or the pain she was sure they were going to cause her.

“How does it happen?” she asked, hoping to keep the conversation on the subject of Werewolves 101.

He glanced down at her - his eyes locking with and holding hers. He seemed about to say something, then shook his head slightly with a shrug. “At sixteen, during the first full moon after their birthday, they change. If they are lucky, they have a pack that prepares them - teaches them to transform at their own will.”

“You mean it’s not only during the full moon?” She asked - and suddenly felt like a complete imbecile.

Here, she had been thinking about all kinds of really bad Lon Chaney Jr. movies, where the wolf man fought against the pull of the full moon. Holy Hell, she had a lot to learn about this new supernatural world to which she was now painfully aware of – and yet, kind of belonged to. Although- she had no idea at all what being part fey entailed. For God’s sake – she didn’t even know the first thing about werewolves. Or that any of these things had actually existed. Cripes! She was a complete fish out of water here – flopping around, just trying to breathe.

Desmond shook his head with a laugh and wrapped his arm around her waist as they entered the woods. “They can change when they choose, or if their rage takes over. If they, or someone they love feel threatened the shift is no longer in their control. That is why it is so important that they have a pack around them. They need to learn how to control their anger, or else it can have dire consequences.”

Abby thought about what Lucas had told her, about his being “royally pissed off” when he had discovered what he was. Hadn’t he had anyone to help him through it? He had said that Desmond had saved his life. No, she silently corrected herself with a slight wrenching of her gut – he had said -
that man of yours.
She immediately tossed the thought aside. “Didn’t Luke have a pack?” she asked and swore she felt him tense ever so slightly.

He was silent for a moment, his arm tightening a bit. “No,” he stated simply, a hint of anger in his tone. “He lived with a grandmother who believed in the - ‘if you don’t speak of it, it isn’t real approach, and never bothered to explain his heritage to him. She refused to embrace her ancestry, and made him suffer for her ignorance. She basically kept him under lock and key his entire life – ignorant of the world to which he belonged.”

“But she had to know what would happen when he turned sixteen!” she cried, her eyes wide. Abby’s heart went out to Lucas - to imagine a boy so young to suddenly have his whole world blown apart. No wonder he had been angry. He had every right to be furious. He was flying blind in a world that was completely unknown to him – and frightening.

Desmond’s jealousy reared its ugly head as soon as Abby mentioned Lucas. Why? He didn’t know. He knew that Lucas was aware of his
protectiveness
of Abby, and that he would never overstep the boundaries off their friendship - yet there was that infernal heat that ran through his body when he heard the compassion and caring in her voice when she spoke of him. He was much more comfortable with her being, as she put it – ‘
weirded’
out by him – and he hated himself for it. He had no right to feel the way he was feeling, but once he had smelled the scent of wolf on her skin – there was no way he could keep his instinct to protect her at bay.

His
was the only scent he wanted on her skin. And just why in the hell had his scent been on her in the first place – he thought sourly. She had said that they had only eaten together. The scent was much stronger than that, and he knew that Lucas had to have touched her – and that thought infuriated him. The thought of
any
man touching her infuriated him.

This damned possessiveness of his made him far from comfortable with her new friendship with the cur. Just what in the hell had they talked about when they had eaten together, he silently wondered - then berated himself for even letting it bother him. He held no claim to the beautiful fey and he needed to remember that – no matter how much his body disagreed.

“She really didn’t care,” he said - attempting to push his jealousy aside. She was here with him and he intended to enjoy every moment of it. “She was a bitter, nasty old crone who punished her grandson for the sins she felt his mother had committed by falling in love and giving birth to him. ”

“You knew her?” Abby gasped, and Desmond nodded.

Walking over to a large rock near a stream, he sat down and pulled her into his arms, holding her close – the vanilla-lavender scent of her teasing his senses. “She lived in the cottage that Lucas and his pack now occupy at the edge of the property.” He responded, his lips gently nibbling her ear. “She was here when I originally purchased the estate and I didn’t have the heart to throw her or her young daughter out - and since I wasn’t planning on living here at that time I assumed they would be no trouble. Marcus could have cared less. He was rarely ever home at night and during the day…well, he slept and didn’t bother with anyone, I suppose.” His lips traveled from her ear, then down her throat slowly as he spoke, and Abby shivered - his touch igniting that ever present flame within her. “I have watched Lucas since I came back to the manor – trying to help when I could. I gave the house and the land to Luke once the old witch finally died so he and his pack would have a place to call their own.”